Arthrosis (osteoarthrosis) is a disease of the joints that leads to their destruction.It affects 10% of the world's population.
When diagnosed with osteoarthritis, the symptoms are severe and treatment of the disease must be comprehensive.
It is necessary to reduce stress, normalize nutrition, remove inflammation, and relieve muscle spasms.What are the features of arthrosis, how to determine its occurrence, and what treatment to choose?
Arthrosis - what is it?
Arthrosis of the joints is degenerative changes in their structure, which are accompanied by pain and visible deformation.The second name of the disease, which is used in the international classification, is osteoarthritis.Let's look at the reasons why it occurs and how it is diagnosed.Osteoarthritis – what is it?
The disease begins with a malnutrition of the cartilage and its destruction.The internal cartilage layer becomes thin, the joint loses strength, and the bone tissue is filled with salts and growths (to compensate for strength).
That’s why arthrosis is called deforming arthrosis – as it develops, the joint takes on an ugly “twisted” shape.
Deforming arthrosis has three stages of development:
- Osteoarthritis of the 1st degree - has no noticeable symptoms, except for a slight crunching and periodic pain when moving;
- Osteoarthritis of the 2nd degree - accompanied by the formation of growths, the appearance of noticeable pain, increased crunching, weakening of muscles;
- Arthrosis of the 3rd degree is called the acute form of the disease.Acute arthrosis is accompanied by the appearance of joint deformities and limited mobility.
What joints does arthrosis affect?
Deformation and inflammation most often affect the joints of the lower extremities - hip, knee, toes (usually the big toe).Less commonly – ankles and fingers.
However, it is possible for the disease to develop in other parts of the body.
With coxarthrosis, the hip joints are affected (often the cause of coxarthrosis is untreated congenital dysplasia).Destruction of the vertebral joints is called spondyloarthrosis, and the destruction of the knee joints is called gonarthrosis.Damage to several joints is called polyarthrosis.
Symptoms of polyarthrosis are the severity of the general condition, the prevalence of the process, curvature and pain in several joints at the same time (legs, arms, fingers, spine).
Inflammation in polyarthrosis spreads asymmetrically, affecting different bone joints in different ways.Once polyarthrosis is diagnosed, treatment varies in duration.
Causes of arthrosis
The formation of arthrosis is promoted by two reasons - stress and lack of adequate nutrition, which supplies vitamins and minerals for tissue restoration.Every person's joints bear stress.For athletes and dancers, during physical work the load on the legs is greater, which means that the bone joints wear out faster and require high-quality nutrition.With a quiet lifestyle, the supporting apparatus wears out more slowly, but also requires periodic tissue renewal.
Therefore, the main condition for the destruction and deformation of joints is malnutrition and failure to absorb useful components, which often occurs due to metabolic disorders.
We list the factors that contribute to the wear of joint joints and metabolic disorders:
- Muscle weakness and improper loading of joints.Weakness of one or more muscles increases the load on the joint and distributes it unevenly within the bony joint.Also, improper loading of muscles occurs with flat feet and scoliosis, so with these “harmless” diseases, cartilage tissue wears out with age, and arthrosis appears.
The likelihood of arthrosis increases with intense physical activity.
If daily loads exceed the capabilities of bone tissues, they formmicrotraumas.Thickenings appear at the sites of injury, which grow over time and deform the joint;
- Metabolic disorders (gastrointestinal diseases - bile stagnation, dysbacteriosis, gastritis, cholecystitis, pancreatitis, metabolic disease - diabetes);
- Psychosomatic causes - psychosomatics of arthrosis confirms that a negative emotional state also becomes the cause of the disease.Stress forms muscle spasms, constant stress disrupts the nutrition of all tissues (internal organs, bones, joints);
- Heredity (the type of metabolism and its possible disorders is inherited, a tendency to muscle weakness or improper formation of the bone apparatus, to poor digestion - which is the basis for the development of arthrosis in old age).
Arthrosis is a disease of worn-out joints that have lost a significant supply of minerals and the ability to withstand stress and destruction.
Therefore, with age, the susceptibility to the disease increases.After 70 years, arthrosis is diagnosed in every second pensioner.Since the maximum load falls on the legs (a person moves - walks, stands, runs, jumps), this is where the first signs of arthrosis form.
Symptoms of arthrosis
Joint disease can be diagnosed by a number of painful symptoms - pain, swelling, crunching.
Symptom #1: Pain
The main symptom of the disease is joint pain.Its appearance is associated with deformation of the joint capsules and the formation of growths.
If you have arthrosis, pain symptoms will increase with movement and decrease with rest.
Or appear in an uncomfortable position and disappear when choosing a position that is comfortable for the leg and joint.In this way, arthrosis differs from arthritis, in which it hurts on the contrary, more often at night, at rest, and hurts less during the day, when a person is “pacing.”
At the beginning of the disease, pain appears periodically (with movement or an uncomfortable position).As the disease progresses, pain is felt more often and becomes stronger.It gets to the point that rest does not bring relief, the joints hurt even at rest.Since by this time the blood circulation is already impaired, the joint becomes “sensitive” to weather changes (“twists”, hurts).
Symptom No. 2: crunching
The crunching occurs due to the loose mutual arrangement of the bones in the diseased joint relative to each other.
However, slight crunching is also possible in healthy joint capsules (with weak ligaments, with hereditarily mobile joints).
Arthrosis crunch is characterized by growth.Over time, it intensifies, becomes louder and more distinct.
Symptom No. 3: joint deformation and reduced mobility
This symptom appears as the disease progresses.It progresses along with increased pain and is associated with the growth of salt build-ups, which prevent the joint from fully bending and straightening.The deformity becomes noticeable in the later stages of the disease.First, the joint swells, then “bumps” appear, an unhealthy bend is formed, “twisting” of the joint capsule.
Treatment of joints with osteoarthritis
Treatment of arthrosis (osteoarthrosis) is based on two postulates - to eliminate stress and provide the joints with adequate nutrition.How to treat osteoarthritis in order to achieve sustainable improvement and stop the destruction of cartilage and degeneration of bone tissue?Treatment of deforming arthrosis uses a complex approach.The patient is prescribed tablets and injections, compresses and physiotherapy.
When diagnosed with osteoarthritis, treatment cannot be one-sided.
You can’t just nourish the cartilage tissue with chondroprotectors or just relax the muscles.One-sided measures will not help cope with such a serious illness.
How to treat arthrosis correctly?During treatment, several areas of therapy are selected:
- Drug therapy: pills, injections, blockades.For arthrosis, treatment with tablets, powders and capsules supplies the body with chondroprotectors.Preparations with chondroitin enhance the synthesis of collagen, which nourishes and restores cartilage tissue.These are glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate.They are produced in the form of tablets for arthrosis, capsules or powders.They help in the initial stages of the disease and lose effectiveness in advanced conditions, when the cartilage is almost completely worn out or destroyed.In this case, the patient undergoes surgery (endoprosthetics), replacing the destroyed joint with artificial tissue.Injections with anti-inflammatory and analgesic components – blockades – are also prescribed.And injections into the joint.In case of arthrosis, with their help, gels are introduced into the bone joint, simulating intra-articular fluid, as well as painkillers and anti-inflammatory substances.
Injections into the joint ensure that the medicine reaches the center of inflammation.
The use of such injections allows you to reduce the number of tablets for arthrosis.Also, vitamin-mineral complexes are prescribed to nourish tissues;
- Exercise therapy.For arthrosis, the attending physician selects a set of gymnastic exercises to perform independently at home.You can learn how to perform them in exercise therapy classes at the clinic.
Gymnastics for arthrosis helps restore muscle tone and remove one of the causes of the disease - weakness of muscle fibers;
- Physiotherapeutic treatment.This includes shock wave therapy (destroys large salt deposits, normalizes blood flow, activates the synthesis of its own collagen), oxygen therapy (saturation of the joint with oxygen), massage (relaxation of muscles and unloading of joints), electrotherapy, wave techniques;
- Diet food.When osteoarthritis is diagnosed, the course of the disease depends on nutrition.For osteoarthritis, the diet excludes any nightshade plants (potatoes, tomatoes, sweet peppers, eggplants).Also, nutrition for arthrosis limits alcohol, sugar, baked goods, confectionery;
- Use of additional amplifiers(orthopedic corsets to support joints - orthoses);
- Alternative treatments.These include acupuncture (acupressure on reflex points that activate blood flow in certain parts of the body), homeopathic treatment, and hirudotherapy.
To successfully treat arthrosis, it is necessary to apply the entire complex of the listed procedures and measures for several months (from 4 to 7).
Who treats arthrosis
Which doctor is a specialist in the treatment of arthrosis?We list the specialists who can provide you with effective assistance:
- A rheumatologist is a doctor who treats with therapeutic methods (tablets, injections, physiotherapy);
- An arthrologist is a doctor specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of joint diseases, masters methods of conservative and surgical treatment, unfortunately, a rare specialty;
- Orthopedist – most often works with patients on an outpatient basis, but in specialized research institutes orthopedic surgeons carry out surgical treatment;
- Therapist and surgeon are doctors who are available in any clinic; they are the ones you need to contact in order to receive a referral for initial examination and treatment.
Treatment of arthrosis with folk remedies
What can you do yourself?When diagnosed with arthrosis, treatment with folk remedies at home can often reduce pain and maintain mobility.
Arthrosis is often treated with gelatin (which the body uses to restore cartilage tissue).
Prevention of osteoarthritis
Prevention of deforming osteoarthritis consists of the following measures:
- Load limitation;
- Massage after physical activity;
- A complete healthy menu with vitamins, minerals, enzymes and bacteria (fermented milk products), carbohydrates, fats and proteins;
- Excess weight control.
When osteoarthritis is diagnosed, the course of the disease depends on preventive measures, nutrition, and the presence of physical (emotional) stress.
Prevention of the disease is recommended for those people whose work and daily activities involve increased stress on the joints.And also for those whose age exceeds 45 years.
Arthrosis is easier to prevent than to treat.It is easier to maintain a joint in a healthy state than to restore cartilage tissue after its destruction.